The pieces of Riverside Trail are falling into place

June 24, 2007|JOSEPH DITS Tribune Staff Writer

SOUTH BEND -- This answers the most common question of humans and critters who amble along Riverside Drive: July 17. That's when the city expects to finish the first phase of the Riverside Trail, a paved path for walkers, bicyclists and in-line skaters from Angela Boulevard north to Oakwood Boulevard. Folks already have been treading the gravel base, which was laid in late 2006 while the initially dry winter allowed contractors a head start. Paving with asphalt might begin this week, says Larry Camparone, the city project inspector who is overseeing the work. Folks also are walking on an 800-foot-long concrete walkway, which juts over the riverbank near Keller Park to give it a safe separation from the road (the shoulder was too narrow). There, a wrought iron railing will be going up, made by an Amish company in Nappanee, Camparone says. Users breathe in wide views of the river, opened up after trees and other vegetation were cut back, especially across from Keller Park. One challenge has been that workers often had to pause their heavy equipment as walkers and dogs passed by, Camparone says. The 10-foot-wide path will stretch 1.75 miles in this phase. It costs about $1.8 million, 80 percent of which is paid with a U.S. Department of Transportation grant, City Engineer Carl Littrell says. Littrell says he hopes to receive bids this fall for work on the trail's second phase, taking it 1.63 miles north to Darden Road. If that goes well, he says, that project would finish in 2008. Here's a look at the making of Phase I: Cantilevered concrete walkway To create the cantilevers -- or the things that support this heavy walkway -- posts known as "helical pilings" were driven into the riverbank ground to a measured depth, Camparone says. They were then filled with concrete. Around them, concrete was poured to create vertical supports like those that hold up a bridge. Large stones filled the bank between the supports. Then, incredibly long, interlocking sections of precast concrete were laid three in a row over the supports. Each piece was designed and poured at a factory to fit this walkway, Camparone says. So everything had to be precise. They fit just right. A rough mix of concrete was poured over the precast sections. Then a final, smooth layer went over that. Concrete columns then rose along the walkway to support the wrought iron railing. The columns are being covered with a decorative stone. Curbs An 8-inch curb has been added in parts to keep cars off the path. Plants Grass and trees will cover most of the area along the trail, but there also will be sections with lots of native plants -- native because they blend with the habitat and require the least fuss to maintain, says Christopher Waidner, project manager for The Troyer Group, which helped to develop the trail. "All of this has to be maintained by the parks department," he says. "There's only so much they can maintain effectively." There will be irrigation for the plants at each of the three "nodes," or places to pause. The wildflowers will include black-eyed Susan, goldsturm, foxglove, beard tongue, rough blazing star and wild bergamot, Camparone says. The wild grasses, which will be found at each crosswalk, will include prairie dropseed and little bluestem. A few trees will be planted, too -- pin oak, river birch and red maple, Camparone says. Aside from grass, he says, don't expect to see the new stuff planted until the fall when the cool air is less stressful on the plants, especially the trees. Chopped-down vegetation Workers had to be cautious in removing trees, which were carefully selected next to other trees to open up views of the river. "When you fell a tree, you had to be sure you don't damage a tree you want to keep," Camparone says. He says the lost greenery didn't hurt erosion control. Littrell adds that all of the plans for the trail -- including the loss of trees -- had to be approved by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. Nodes This is the technical term for the three places on the path to gather and gaze: across from Academy Place, across from Sherman Avenue and along the concrete walkway. Crosswalks There will be six places to cross Riverside. At each crossing, the pedestrian will push a button, which will activate a sign that flashes the word "WALK" in yellow lights at motorists, Camparone says. Retaining walls Workers had to install a retaining wall along selected parts of the riverbank. That's because there wasn't a gradual slope to the river -- the soil just hung over the edge, Camparone says. There was a risk that the bank could erode under the weight of the trail. To make the wall strong, landscaping bricks were fitted into a grid of recycled rubber, he says. This was then faced with concrete. A wrought iron fence will top off the wall. One section of the wall south of Riverside Court had to be repaired after a motorist ran off of the road this spring, Camparone says. Water, water They're in the original plan, but there won't be drinking fountains; they're considered a vandalism risk, Camparone says.